Does a Waterless System Really Make Sense for Public Urinals?

When you mention public urinals to most people, the instinctive reaction is usually that these are nasty, smelly, germ-infested receptacles. In many cases, this is indeed true, as the design of typical flushing public urinals. creates ideal conditions for the build-up of unpleasant odors and bacteria.

It is a commonly held myth that the nasty smell in shared sanitation areas like public urinals comes from the urine itself. Urine within the human body is generally odorless, unless the person is suffering from a medical condition. The problem is that as urine passes out of the body, it comes in contact with bacteria that then inhabit the urine and start to break it down as a food source.

This process releases gasses like ammonia that lead to the characteristic odor associated with urine. With this in mind, it stands to reason that the best way to minimize odors in public bathrooms is to minimize the amount of bacteria present.

In order to live and multiply, the bacteria that feed on urine need a warm, moist living environment. The typical urinal creates exactly this environment with water being introduced every time the unit is flushed, keeping the surface almost constantly damp.

Non-flushing waterless urinals make perfect sense for use as public urinals, as their design creates an environment that is actually hostile to odor-causing bacteria.

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